An Escape
by SubZero153
Summary: 11 year old Spencer Reid just tries to live unnoticed. Between his dead parents, abusive foster-dad and bullies his life isn't all that great. When a certain FBI team investigates killings in Las Vegas, Spencer may find the escape he as always been looking for. First story but I love constructive criticism, I will try to update quickly.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer- I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.

This is my first attempt at writing fanfiction. would love some constructive criticism and I would love hearing any ideas you may have. I will try and update frequently (school and sports permitting). Thanks for at least giving this story a try. Sorry for any mistakes.

Las Vegas, Nevada

Spencer stepped into the large school building at exactly 7:35 like he did every morning. It was five minutes before everyone else normally arrived; this gave him time to get to his locker (unharmed) and go to homeroom early. Mrs. Gibbs, his homeroom and English teacher, didn't show up until 8:00 o'clock anyways, but she left the classroom unlocked. Spencer ran up the two flights of stairs and scurried down to his locker _204_. He twisted the lock using his combination _23-07-13_.  
It took Spencer a whole two minutes to remember that it was a day 3; therefore  
he had P.E. first period and didn't need any books. Spencer could tell you a  
hundred digits of pi but when it came to common sense or remembering simple  
things such as, where he left his homework, he was clueless. Looking down at his watch he saw that it was 7:39 and that the crowd of high school students would soon be flooding the hallways. Quickly shoving his orange and black backpack into his locker, Spencer walked down a few doors to his homeroom. Once he settled down in his favorite reading chair, a squishy bean bag chair in the back corner, he opened up _The Divine Comedy_ and began reading so fast it would appear as if he was skimming.

Quantico- FBI headquarters, Virginia

Saying that Derek Morgan hated mornings was an understatement. Taking another sip of his coffee he looked over some old cases that he was reviewing in order to finish up paperwork. It had been over week since their last case and everyone was enjoying their much needed family time. After two hours of tedious paper work, Morgan went to go get more coffee and check in with Garcia.

"Look I know you love Henry but please try and cut back on the gifts, every time you come over the house is a wreck the next day."

"JJ, I can't help it, he is the cutest little thing in the world, I mean how can you not spoil that child"

"I found Legos in the cereal box this morning, he must have put them in their last night." JJ said.

Morgan was outside the door silently laughing to himself. He could just imagine JJ pouring out some Cheerios only to find Legos mixed with the cereal.

"Hey, Baby Girl" Morgan said. He popped his head inside her lair of computers.

"See my Morgan is here to defend me, tell her Morgan that Henry deserves to get toys from his godmother."

"I don't know Garcia, JJ has a point." Morgan added.

"Both of you out," she said shooing them away "I have work to attend to, oh and Morgan you may want to have a go-bag ready Jayje was telling me you guys have a case."

"Really," Morgan sighed.

"Sorry Handsome,"

Morgan walked out of her office.

"Round table in five." he asked JJ.

"Yep, you know the drill"

40 minutes later they were on the plane heading out west to Las Vegas. So far three men in their late twenties had been found shot in the back of the head execution style. Devin Gold, James Carson and Alan Chang were the victims. There were no signs of sadism; most likely this person was a mission based killer.

"When we land, Morgan and JJ go to Las Vegas High, all three men attended maybe we can find a connection. Rossi, you and Prentiss go check out the disposal site; now that it has been compromised he will have to use a new one. I will set up at the station." Hotch said.

"Hey Hotch," Morgan exclaimed looking over the crime scene photos again."

"Yes," he replied.

"Could this killer be a woman, look at the way they were laid out neatly, definite signs of remorse. Also, there is no blood down the neck; someone must have wiped it off post-mortem."

"It's defiantly a possibility, if this killer is a woman she may be going after men that remind her of someone."

"I agree with Morgan," Rossi piped up "I don't think a male mission based killer would show this much remorse. Even though one victim was Asian they all have dark hair and brown eyes."

Las Vegas, Nevada.

Physical Education or P.E. as it was called was horrible. Even though Spencer was only 11 he still was in the same class with juniors and seniors. The locker room situation was horrible changing into gym clothes was easy; as long as he got to class early the room was vacant. After class was another story, bullies had evolved, they know that there are no cameras in locker rooms and that after gym is the best time to bully someone. It was at times like these that Spencer wished he was a girl, he doubted that an 11 year old girl would ever get beaten up in a girls locker room. Quickly Spencer changed into a gray t-shirt and black shorts and, ran out of that room and into the gym as fast as he could. Today they were running outside on the track around of school. Days like these were good, Spencer could just walk and not show off how uncoordinated he was. No one would dare mess with him because every classroom had windows and teachers would easily see. After signing in on the attendance sheet, Spencer headed out gym doors and started to just walk around.

An hour goes quickly when you are thinking, and boy, did Spencer think. He thought about his parents who had died in a car accident three years ago. He thought about his current foster family who he would do anything to get away from. Mason, his foster dad, liked to drink. A lot. Sometimes when he was really drunk he would take it out on Spencer. He would use his belt and whip him on the back. Sometimes, Mason would straddle his hips and just punch him in the face; for no real reason. After walking three laps the whistle blew to let them know that they had to head back inside. Cursing at himself, Spencer ran back to the gym. He was on the opposite side of the track when the whistle blew so he wouldn't be able to get to the locker room early today.

As he re-entered the building, Spencer could see that he was probably the last kid to come inside. He darted into the room only to bump into Mike. Mike was easily the scariest dude in the school, he was the star basketball point guard and an a$$.

"I'm s-so s-sorry" Spencer managed to say.

"Next time watch where're you're going, fag." Mike said. He pushed Spencer into the wall to prove his point.

Spencer just hurried on to his locker, thanking the lord that Mike hadn't decided to beat him up. Spencer was pulling of his shirt when he felt someone grab his hands from behind. His shirt was stuck on his head, so he couldn't see who had grabbed him, although he assumed one of Mike's crew.

The shirt was pulled of his head just as his shorts were pulled off too. Spencer stood their scared out of his mind, barefoot with nothing but a pair of blue boxers on.

"Wh-what are you d-doing?" Spencer asked in a high pitched voice.

"Teaching you a lesson," Mike said.

Mike put his hands on Spencer's shoulders and marched him out of the locker room and into the hallway.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer- I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters. **

**I just wanted to give a big thanks to everyone who commented and/or read. It feels so good to see people who want to read my story. Reviews also keep me motivated so if you want more story quicker then please review. Here is chapter 2. Sorry for any mistakes (I am a horrible editor). **

Las Vegas- Outside the building, Nevada

Morgan and JJ stepped out of the black SUV, both with their sunglasses on, and walked into the high school.

"Ahh, Agents, over here." A short plump woman yelled.

They assumed she was the principal. The three of them walked into her office.

"Feel free to sit, I've heard about what happened to those men, isn't it horrible, I hope you catch the guy he deserves to be punished. I remember when James was a freshman; you know all of those men played varsity lacrosse now that I think of it. They were all very good too, they may have all been captains but I don't really remember" she ranted on.

"Sorry ma'am, your name?" JJ asked.

"My bad dear, I am Lisa Gale."

"Mrs. Gale, you said they all played lacrosse, did they play at the same time?" JJ asked.

"I'm sorry I don't remember if they were on the team at the same time, although our P.E. teacher Mr. Johns has coached lacrosse for over twenty years I'm sure he'll remember"

"We will make sure to talk to him later; do you remember anything else about Devin, James and Alan?" Morgan asked.

"None of them were trouble makers, but I do remember that James was very bright. He was in all advanced classes since day one. He graduated valedictorian; come to think of it the only person I know who is smarter is Spencer, but then again Spencer is smarter than everyone. But no, I can't think of anything else that may help you." Mrs. Gale said.

"Thank you ma'am, could you tell us where we could find Mr. Johns?" JJ asked

"Of course dear, he would be in the gym, if you continue down the hall and take a left you end up there, I would take you myself, but I have a meeting to go to." she said.

"Alright, and thank you again." Morgan said as he and JJ left the office.

Las Vegas, Nevada-inside the building

Spencer cringed as he was pulled out the locker room, it was no secret that he was socially awkward and standing out there in nothing but his boxers was really embarrassing. Heads turned as Mike, who practically carrying a thrashing Spencer marched down the hallway. No one did anything, no one got a teacher, and no one tried to stop him. They all just stared as Mike punched Spencer in the gut. Spencer fell to the floor wheezing, he tried to scoot back but only ended up hitting a wall.

"Stop, please, I'm sorry, please, it won't happen again. Please, no" Spencer pleaded

"Shut up, fag." Mike yelled. His dark form loomed over the trembling boy. This was no fight, in one corner stood Spencer Reid weighing in at 4'11 and 78 pounds and in the other stood Mike Steiner weighing at 6'0 and 170 pounds. Mike grabbed the kid and smashed his face into a locker. Spencer yelled out as he felt a gash appear above his left eyebrow. A mixture of sweat and blood trickled down into his eye. It stung worse than a bee sting, Spencer frantically tried to wipe it out of his eyes to no avail. His eyes started to water in an effort to clean out the stinging liquid.

"Aww isn't that cute our little _Genius _is in high school but still cries like a baby" Mike taunted.

Spencer tried to stand up but was dizzy from where he had hit his head; Mike seized the opportunity and hooked a brutal punch to the kid's nose. A deafening crack followed, as blood poured out of the now broken nose. Spencer started to cry, not tear up, but a full cry. He lay there on the ground pinching his nose in an effort to stop the bleeding. The first kick to his ribs made him cough; the second wheeze and the third winded him completely. He was bracing himself for the fourth kick, still out of breath.

"Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing." A loud voice yelled.

Derek ran over to the kid on the ground. The crowd dispersed and Derek never got a look at the attacker. Blood was on his face and bare chest the source seemed to be a nosebleed and a nasty cut. What shocked Derek the most was that the kid look no older than 12.

"Hey kid, are you okay?" Derek asked. You're an idiot, he thought to himself, of course he's not okay.

"Yeah mm fine." the kid mumbled. He had started to try and sit up with the wall against his back.

Derek knelt down and offered the kid a hand; he just shrugged it off and tried to stand up himself.

"JJ he needs to go to the hospital." Derek tried to say quietly.

"Wait, what, no I am fine; really it's just a nose bleed." the kid pleaded. Spencer knew he couldn't go to the hospital, Mason will kill him. He would yell at him about medical expenses and punish him for wasting his time.

"What's your name, little man?"

"Spencer," he replied

"Okay Spencer, you have a cut above your eyebrow that looks like it needs stitches and your nose appears to be broken. I can get a teacher to call your parents to bring to the E.R." Morgan explained.

"No, no you can't do that." he said frantically as if his life depended on it. If Mason had to pick him up, well, things would only get worse.

Morgan and JJ exchanged quick worried glances.

"Sweetie, why can't we do that?" JJ asked

"Cause, he'll get mad." Spencer whispered.

"Who will get mad, Spencer, your dad?" Morgan said.

Spencer looked down at his feet and started casually kicking the wall. He just wanted to get his clothes and head back to class but instead two strangers were interrogating him about his personal life.

"Can I get my clothes now, they are in the locker room?" he asked

"Sure, I'll come with you." Morgan answered.

Great, all he had wanted to do was get away, and now this crazy muscle dude was following him around, trying to get him killed. Could this day get any worse? What else was going to happen, would he get run over by a car, struck by lightning, attacked by a bear?

"What is a little man like you doing in high school?" Derek prodded trying to get the kid talking.

"I'm a senior, I skipped a few grades."

"How old are you" Derek tried again.

"Eleven but I'll be twelve when I graduate."

Spencer walked into the locker room and headed over to where his locker was. He pulled on the khaki pants and used his gym shirt to wipe some of the blood off of his chest and hands. He pulled on his red polo shirt and threw out his now soiled gym shirt. Walking over to the sinks he tried not to look at the strange man who appeared to be a cop of some sort.

"So what are you, a detective or an agent?" Spencer asked taking notice of his sidearm.

"Agent, I'm Derek, by the way."

"Cool" Spencer mumbled.

Derek knew something was up with Spencer. He had seen too many abused kids to miss the signs. He had also noticed the scars on the kids back; they looked like a belt had been used. Derek also knew that many abused kids won't admit to being abused, which made the helping them situation a whole lot harder. He watched Spencer wash his hands and clean out his cut and nose (both of which had almost stopped bleeding).

"Kid, if you want to tell me something I promise I can get you help, but I can't help you if you don't tell me." Derek said. He was sure the Spencer knew what he was talking about; the kid had to be bright. Probably a genius of sorts. "Who will be mad?"

"Mason" he said quietly

"Who's Mason, your brother?"

"My foster-dad." Spencer admitted

"Spencer, does Mason ever hurt you."

Silence

"Spencer, I promise anything you say will say will stay strictly confidential."

"You're such a liar, even if he did hurt me, which I'm not saying he does, what would happen. I would just get shuffled around into a different foster family. How would that solve any of my problems?" Spencer yelled.

Derek's heart reached out to the kid, he had a point nothing would change. He would just end up being another lost kid in a messed up system. He might end up in another family which abused their children.

"Spencer, yes or no, does anyone at home hurt you or do things to you that they shouldn't?" Derek asked softly.

Again he avoided answering.

"Spencer, I have to take you to the nurse's office now, they will call your foster-parents. If you tell me the truth I promise I won't let them call. Okay?"

Still, the eleven year old didn't respond.

"How about this, as long as the school allows it, I will personally take you to the hospital, so we can get you all fixed up. We can talk about it there, okay?" Morgan said.

"Okay" Spencer whispered.

The two left the locker room. Half of Spencer wanted to tell Derek everything; the other half knew that, one way or another, Mason would find a way to punish him and that telling would only make it worse.

**So there you have it, will Spencer tell Morgan, will Mason find out?**

***Spoiler Alert***

**I am planning for one of the team to temporarily take care of Spencer, right now I am thinking Morgan will do it, but I want your opinion too. If you want a certain member of the team to take Spencer, leave a comment and your wish may just come true.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer- I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.**

**This chapter is a little shorter then the others, but all with good reason. The next chapter (which I have already started to write) will be a bit longer and have more substance. There will be long talks and events that flow into each other. I am sorry if I disappointed you but the next chapter will most likely be up tomorrow. Again thanks for reading (and reviewing), it really means a lot to me. Sorry for any mistakes. **

Morgan got permission to sign Spencer out of school, while JJ informed Hotch about what was going on. The police station was near the hospital so the plan was to drop JJ off before Morgan took Spencer to the E.R. The nurse had stuck a band-aid over the cut and gave Spencer some ice for his nose which had started to discolor due to the bruise. She also gave him an acetaminophen (Tylenol) to help with the pain. The ride back to the station was uneventful; Morgan tried to make small talk with the kid but Spencer was clearly content with sitting in silence. They dropped JJ off at the station, she said goodbye to Spencer and promised to check up on him later. The hospital was only a few minutes away.

"So, you ready to talk yet kid?" Morgan asked

He just shook his head no.

Morgan let out a frustrated sigh; he knew he had to be patient.

Once they arrived at the hospital they had to wait in the waiting room for an hour. Once they got checked in, it took another hour before Spencer was seen by a doctor.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Porter, sorry for the wait. We got really busy all of the sudden" she said as she walked into the small room. She was young with a green eyes and a brown ponytail that hung just below her shoulders. "You must be Spencer." she said giving a comforting look to the young boy.

Dr. Porter checked his breathing and heart rate and poked around to see if any ribs were damaged. After concluding that his midsection was fine she moved on to look at his face.

"Spencer, I am going to take a peek at this cut, okay." she said. He nodded and she pulled off one edge of the band-aid.

"Doesn't look too big but I think a couple of stitches will help it heal nicer. I'll do those in a few minutes but first I want to look at that nose."

She prodded around with her gloved fingers asking him where it hurt the most. After her quick examination she concluded that it was a minor break and that he should ice it, and not do any exercise for the next two weeks.

"Spencer, I am going to numb your forehead so it doesn't hurt when I fix it. You may feel a little pinch but then it will stop hurting." she said.

The doctor prepared a syringe of local anesthetic while Spencer looked around the room. Morgan didn't miss the small wince the escaped the boy's mouth when he saw the needle.

"It's okay kiddo, I promise it doesn't hurt that bad." he tried to comfort him. Morgan had gotten stitches plenty of times, but he still hated needles all the same.

"Why don't you look at your friend over there, while I numb it." she said pointing to Morgan.

Spencer who was biting his lip looked over at Derek with pleading eyes while Dr. Porter injected the anesthetic. She returned a few minutes later with a needle and thread and began to stitch up the cut; she finished quickly and tied off the last stitch.

"Okay, it's all done now. Spencer, do you want to watch some T.V." she said pointing the television "while I talk with Agent Morgan outside."

"Sure" he said

Dr. Porter flipped on the T.V. and turned it to cartons then headed out of the room with Morgan.

"Why don't we go into my office" she said leading the way.

Once inside the doctor began. "When I was looking at Spencer's chest I noticed some unusual scarring, it looked fairly new I'd say within the last two years or so, he also had some facial bruising that was fading but at one point would have been severe. I have seen many child abuse cases and the scarring on his back is almost identical to others who have been beaten with a belt." she began

"I had a strong suspicion that he is being abused, I saw some of his scars earlier, also his behavior indicates abuse." Morgan added. "The problem is I can't get him to admit it. I know he is in foster care but I don't know anything about his biological parents."

"I would try to talk with him and get the truth out, what damage I happened to see may not be the worst of it. He could also be being sexually abused or neglected."

"I'll speak with him; we are under an agreement so hopefully he will be a little more talkative. Thank you for your time Doc." he said

They shook hands and Morgan left. Now he was faced with the difficult task of forcing the truth out of Spencer.

JJ walked into the station just as the rest of the team was delivering the prolife

"We believe our unsub it a female in her late twenties to early thirties. We also believe that she was most likely in an abusive relationship; she is going after men who remind her of her boyfriend. All of the victims were around the same age with dark hair and eyes and they all played lacrosse. It may just be a matter of time before she goes after her real object of rage." Hotch started.

"While the killings show signs of remorse she still is classified as armed and dangerous. Chances are when apprehended she will panic and threaten suicide or suicide by cop. Once she goes after her old boyfriend she may feel as if there is nothing left for her in the world this could lead to her endgame." Rossi added

"She's intelligent and meticulous; the crimes were organized and carefully planned out. She's smart enough to hold a high ranking job but also reserved enough to not stick out in a crowd. She will seem quiet and thoughtful but when cornered her rational thinking may go out the window." Prentiss said.

"Thank you and if you have any question please feel free to ask." Hotch finished. The large crowd of officers and detectives went back to doing their jobs. JJ ran over to join her colleagues who had gone back to boards to review evidence and possible suspects.

"Hey, did Garcia find anything about the lacrosse team?" JJ asked.

"Not yet." Hotch replied. "and JJ, how's the kid"

"Alright I guess, he was really quiet, and Morgan was the only one really interacting with him so I didn't get a chance to personally talk with him."

"Aww, my baby with a baby." Garcia piped up. JJ hadn't even noticed that she was video chatting with them. "Don't worry JJ, Emily already informed me all about Morgan's pint-sized friend." Garcia continued.

"I said I would go check up on him later, and if Morgan isn't successful at getting through to him, I can try myself." JJ said.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer- I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.**

**Here is Chapter 4, I just wanted to give you guys a heads up that I am going away this weekend and won't have any computer access from Friday on. I will try and post tomorrow and the next time will probably be Tuesday-ish time. Thanks for understanding. Keep the reviews coming (I literally freak out every time I see a new one). Thanks for reading, as always. Sorry for any mistakes. **

"Alright little man, you and I are going to have a chat." Morgan said while entering the room and sitting down on the bed.

Spencer nodded.

"I am going to ask you some questions; all I want you to do is answer them honestly, no matter how stupid they may sound inside your head, okay?"

"Okay" he responded.

"You said Mason is your foster-dad, what happened to your real parents?"

"They died" he said, barely audible.

Seeing as Spencer got visually upset, Morgan didn't push the subject any further.

"Who else lives with you and Mason?" Morgan asked

"Jennifer is Mason's wife but she travels for work a lot and is rarely home, right now I am the only kid living there."

"You said that Mason would get mad if he had to take you to the hospital, what does Mason do when he is mad?"

"He yells." Spencer said.

"He does other things doesn't he?"

"Sometimes"

"Does he ever touch you in private places or make you feel uncomfortable?"

"No, it's not like that."

"Does he ever hit you?" he questioned

Spencer just looked at his feet and shook his head.

"Spencer, I know you're not telling me everything."

"Sometimes, he consumes too much alcohol and becomes intoxicated."

"Does he hurt you when he is intoxicated?" Morgan said using the kid's terminology.

Spencer was silent but it was quite obvious that, Derek had struck a nerve. He started viciously tapping his foot and bite down on his lower lip.

"It's okay Spencer, I promise he won't hurt you anymore, but I need you to tell me using your words if he hurts you or not." Morgan said.

Like that the kid broke down. Tears started welling up in his eyes and his foot started tapping faster.

Morgan put his arm around Spencer's shoulder in an effort to comfort him. Morgan was at a loss of words, he was treading in new waters, and he hadn't had much experience in comforting distraught children.

"S-s-sometimes, when h-he is r-really dr-drunk he hits m-me with h-his be-belt and h-he won't let me e-eat even th-though we have a pl-plethora or f-food." Spencer managed to get out, his voice wobbling. "He says th-that if I t-tell I will be p-punished and he s-says that h-he al-always can f-find me."

"I promise you, I will make sure that he never hurts you again, okay." Morgan.

Spencer nodded.

The case was going well, they were confident that their unsub was 29 year old Miriam Wells. They were planning to raid her home. Her neighbor, who had seen the press conference, called to say that Miriam fit the description very well and that she had been acting a little off lately. After some digging (thanks to Garcia) they confirmed that she fit the bill. JJ wasn't needed for the raid so she figured she would use her time to visit Spencer. She arrived at the hospital and asked one of the nurses where Spencer was, flashing her badge. She kindly directed her to room 104. Upon arriving she was shocked by the scene that was unfolding. Spencer was sitting there crying into Derek's shoulder, unaware that she had arrived.

"Come back later." she silently mouthed.

"Thanks" Morgan mouthed back.

JJ walked off to try and buy a Lego set. She figured that most eleven year olds enjoy playing with them and as long as it was complex enough it should cheer Spencer up too.

"What's going to happen now, will I just go to another home?" Spencer asked Derek.

"Probably, but you're senior now in less than a year you will be attending college."

"I suppose, I'm just tired of being shuffled around."

"I know, kid. It must suck, but if you ever need to talk with someone you can always a call me, even if it isn't importa…"

"Spencer, Spencer, there you are, the school called and told me you were in the hospital." A large man appeared in the doorway.

Spencer stared at Mason with fearful eyes; he backed up into Morgan even further.

"Spencer, we have to get going, the doctor signed your discharge papers and we need to go home, now."

Morgan was stunned; he wasn't expecting Mason to show up, especially after Spencer just admitted to everything.

"Derek, please don't let him take me!"

Spencer pulling on Derek's arm snapped him out of his aloofness.

"Sir, I'm sorry, but you can't take Spencer right now." Morgan said using every ounce of effort to lash out at this man.

"And why is that, I'm his guardian, I have every right."

"We have reason to believe that Spencer is being abused at home, I can't let you take him." Morgan said gritting his teeth.

"That's bullsh*t, I would never lay a hand on him." Mason shouted

"Medical evidence suggests otherwise, I suggest you leave and wait until child services come in, they will resolve this."

"This f*cking stupid, Spencer you will be in big trouble when they find out you're lying." Mason shouted and stormed out of the room.

Spencer started to rock, wrapping his arms around his knees.

"It's alright Spencer, he left and I promise he won't come back."

"He said I would be in trouble, it hurt so badly when I am punished for being bad." Spencer spoke quickly.

"You were never bad, he was bad, not you. He's not going to hurt you again; I will make sure of it." Morgan said comfortingly.

JJ had returned with some shopping bags and entered the room when she saw the Spencer was calming down.

"Hey, buddy, I have to go make some calls, you remember JJ, she's going to stay with you."

Spencer nodded and Morgan left the room to make some difficult phone calls. First, he called Spencer's social worker to inform her of the situation. She said she was going to come talk with him in person and would meet him and Spencer at the police station in a few hours. Next he called Hotch to give him an update and tell him that he and Spencer would be coming to the station the in a few hours. Hotch told him that they had successfully caught their unsub without her doing any more harm to herself or others.

Meanwhile inside the room Spencer was busy working on the Lego Star Wars set that JJ had got him. He finished the 300 piece set in less than ten minutes without using the direction besides a couple of peeks here or there. JJ was amazed, she had never seen anyone do anything that quick and sitting in front of her was an eleven year old capable of doing so.

"Thank you for the Lego's; I haven't done one of these in years." Spencer said cheerfully.

"You're welcome, Spencer, you're really good at building them." she responded.

"Thanks." he said. His tongue was slightly out of his mouth, eyes skewed in concentration, he was observing the spaceship, making sure he built it correctly.

Derek Morgan walked back into the room just as Spencer confirmed that he was done. Derek told Spencer that they would be going to talk with his social worker later. Only one thought was on Morgan's mind, he wanted to take care of Spencer. Spencer would be going to college in a year and he didn't seem like a needy kid. Garcia was always around to help out. Derek could get him out of the foster care system and provide a stable living environment. Spencer had bonded to him over the past day and Derek was sure that he wouldn't mind living with him. Morgan was faced with one very difficult task though; convincing Spencer's social worker.


	5. Chapter 5

_I am soooooooo sorry. Life went bezerk and I don't want to bore you with my sad story of why I couldn't update but just know that I didn't forget. That being said I don't know how often I can update, I just have a lot to deal with right now. I hope you understand. As always thank you for reading and/or reviewing. I'm sorry for the mistakes. I love you guys. _

JJ and Morgan checked Spencer out of the hospital and drove him back to their makeshift headquarters. The kid was still quite although he did seem a little more relaxed then the first time Morgan interacted with him. Morgan knew he needed to talk with Spencer before his social worker came to visit. He had to discuss whether Spencer would even consider living with Morgan. Looking down at his watch, Morgan noticed that it was almost four o'clock in the afternoon, cursing himself he realized that the kid must be starving.

"Hey Spencer, are you hungry?" JJ asked practically reading Morgan's mind.

"A little, I guess," he answered. Morgan knew that what he was really trying to say was "God yes, I'm starving."

"When we get back to the station, I'll have someone run out for food. I bet the rest of the team is pretty hungry as well." Morgan said.

"Are you sure? I would hate to be an inconvenience…"

"You are not an inconvenience; I don't want to hear you saying that." Morgan interrupted.

Spencer just stared, out the window, at passing cars the rest of the short ride.

The trio arrived at the station a few minutes later, the pulled the SUV into the front lot and Morgan nodded at JJ to go inside while he spoke with Spencer in the car for a moment.

"Before we speak with your social worker I just wanted to run some things by you first." Morgan started. "I don't want you to have to go back into the foster care system and I definitely don't want you to have to back to that school. I know this may sound abrupt or that I am speaking on a whim but I assure you I'm not. Would you consider letting me take care of you until you go off to college."

The first words out of Spencer's mouth were "I don't even know you"

"True, but chances are you won't know your new foster family either."

"Yes, but you could be an axe murder for all I know." Spencer said.

"Right kid, I'm the FBI axe murderer."

"It's possible. And to answer your question honestly, I'm not sure, can I think about it."

"Of course whenever you want to talk just tell me." Morgan said.

Spencer nodded and the two of them marched into the station. Morgan placed a hand onto Spencer's shoulder as they entered the building.

"_Spencer, Spencer, get your a$$ down here, right now!" Mason yelled, speech slurring._

_Fearfully, Spencer hopped out of his bed and ran down the stairs to see a drunk Mason in the kitchen._

"_Well don't just stand there wide-eyed boy, get me a beer."_

"_Yes sir" Spencer said. He ran over to the fridge and grabbed a can; he placed it down onto the table in front of him._

_Mason popped open the car and started chugging down the alcohol._

_Spencer tried to sneak back upstairs hoping that he wouldn't notice when he accidentally knocked over the half-drunken beer can Mason set down._

"_I'm sorry, please, I'll clean it up."_

"_Damn right you will, get over here boy."_

_Spencer walked over to Mason who instantly grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and dragged him into the living room._

"_You're going to learn your lesson, turn around, shirt off, hands on the wall." Mason said_

"_No please, I'm sorry, don't, I will clea…"_

"_It wasn't a question boy, DO IT." he yelled._

_Reluctantly Spencer obeyed, knowing that not listening would only make it worse in the long run. He heard Mason undoing his belt and braced himself for the first hit._

_Crack…"Ahhhhh," Crack… "Please, it hurts," Crack…"NOOOOOO,"_

Spencer gasped awake, to find himself on a coach in the police station. Taking a deep breath he looked around to see Derek sitting at a desk filling out paperwork.

"Hey, you're awake. After we ate you conked out right away."

"What time is it?" Spencer asked.

"Nine in the morning, I told you're social worker that you were asleep so we are meeting her, today for lunch."

Spencer just nodded.

"I'm going to take you back to the hotel so you can shower and JJ picked up some clothes from your house." Morgan told him.

"Okay,"

The two left the station and got ready for the difficult meeting ahead. After a nice long shower and a change of clothes (a purple and black striped polo and grey shorts) Spencer sat down on the hotel bed and waited for Derek to finish showering. When Derek was finished, they sat in awkward silence waiting for the 12:30 meet up.

"Yes," Spencer said quietly.

"What?" Morgan asked.

"Yes I wouldn't mind going to Virginia with you." Spencer said.

Derek looked at him, and smiled. "Welcome to the family, kid."


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer- I do not own Criminal Minds or any of the characters.**

**Sorry if I wrote the reactions poorly. Having very mild AS I have trouble writing peoples emotions or reactions as they don't come as natural to me. I can write Spencer just because I always pictured him as having mild AS. But I will try to fix that next chapter. Anyways, I won't be able to post for a little while, but fear not I will come back. I'm going away for a week, so don't freak out when I don't post next week. As always any mistakes are mine and I'm sorry for them. Thanks a gogul for reading and /or reviewing.**

Spencer shifted in the uncomfortable chair, he didn't like the restaurant, he didn't like the food and most importantly he didn't like his social worker, Anna Marks. Mostly because every time he saw her, it meant change. Change was something that Spencer never enjoyed, change was bad. The grown-ups were talking about grown-up stuff and legal concerns; it wasn't like Spencer didn't understand, he did, maybe even better than they did. To put it frankly; it was boring. He sipped on his lemonade and watched the other people eating at other tables. His nose and forehead hurt and it was too hot and stuffy in the room.

"...would you like that, Spencer?" she asked.

"Sorry, I didn't catch that." he said.

"I said, would you like to live with Derek for a little while." she repeated.

"Um, yeah that be fine with me." he mumbled.

"Great, I think that would be okay for a temporary solution, once he's off to college we could place him with a family near his university. Obviously, we would need to check up with you quite frequently to make sure that his home-life is stable. I can fax over some documentation and paper work that you'll to fill out prior to taking Spencer out of Las Vegas."

"Thank you, Ms. Marks." Morgan said, while shaking her hand.

"It was my pleasure, take care Spencer, it was nice knowing you." she said, looking down at him.

Spencer just gave her a little wave and she walked out of the restaurant.

"So, little man, ready to go?" Derek asked.

Spencer nodded, they payed the bill and got into the car to go back to the station. JJ had gotten most of Spencer's things from his house; photos, clothes, books. Morgan wanted to properly introduce Spencer to the team before they headed on a plane together. He had seen bits and pieces of them but no sitting down and saying hello.

"Okay little man, let me give you the rundown of what's going on. First, we're going to meet the rest of the team, Hotch may seem all stern and serious but when it comes down to it he's the biggest softie of us all."

That got a giggle from Spencer.

"Tomorrow, we'll fly out to Virginia and get you settled at my place." Morgan continued.

"Okay" Spencer said.

As they entered the building, Spencer didn't know what to expect. He was never one to enjoy social gatherings and meetings, so meeting a bunch of new people at once seemed utterly overwhelming. The first thing he noticed was a tall man with black hair, in a suit on the phone. He looked like a "Hotch". Morgan led him over a conference table where a group of people were eating and talking.

"Hey guys, this is Spencer." Morgan said.

All heads turned and looked at him. He took a step back and nudged into Morgan. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Derek giving him a small reassuring smile. They went around introducing themselves, there was an Emily, JJ and David and a "Hotch" on the phone, plus someone named Garcia who apparently, couldn't wait to see him. Everyone could tell that Spencer was tense so Derek suggested that he could read in one of the conference rooms. Happily, Spencer agreed but could still hear the woman talking. They were throwing words like "cute", "adorable" and "tiny" around. If only they could see the glare they were getting from the other side of the wall.

"Is he really only eleven?" Prentiss asked.

"Yeah," Derek said "He's a senior too, crazy smart"

"I just can't imagine him as a college student next year" she said.

"I know. I bet Garcia has already baked him six cakes." Morgan said.

"Six? More like sixty." Prentiss said, with a smile.

"That woman is crazy." Derek said laughing.

The next day, when Morgan had finished filling out papers for Spencer, they were off to the jet to go home.

"Morgan, can I talk to you for a moment." Hotch asked.

"Yeah, sure what's wrong? Morgan asked.

"You do know how much work taking care of a child can be, right?" Hotch said, with a stern eye.

"Well I guess I'm going to learn, and Garcia will help out on cases. He seems pretty self-dependent already."

"Trust me, what you are seeing now is the good side of him, he's still just an abused eleven year old boy." Hotch said.

"What is this about, Hotch?" Morgan said, questioning the direction of the conversation.

"If you ever need help, just call." Hotch said, smiling.

"Thanks, man" Morgan said.

The plane ride home was uneventful. There was a lot of sleeping and reading, but not much else. Even though Morgan knew very well that Garcia would love to meet Spencer right away, but figured it should wait for tomorrow. He was thinking of inviting everyone over for dinner tomorrow and give Spencer a chance to meet everyone in a more "relaxed" setting. But of course, he would have to run it by his "little man", first.


End file.
